Tokyo Skytree Observation Deck Remains Closed for Inspection after Elevator Stopping Accident; Decision on Thursday Opening Still Pending

The Yomiuri Shimbun

13:32 JST, February 25, 2026

The observation deck of Tokyo Skytree in Sumida Ward, Tokyo, remained closed to visitors on Wednesday following an elevator accident on Sunday evening.

Twenty people, including two children, were trapped inside a descending elevator that stopped about 30 meters above the ground and remained there for about 5½ hours. Everyone was rescued, and no one was injured.

Skytree’s operating company, Tobu Tower Skytree Co., decided on Tuesday that the observation deck should remain closed to visitors for inspection for a third day on Wednesday, as inspectors continued looking into the cause of the accident and assessing the overall condition of the elevator.

The elevator was manufactured by Toshiba Elevator and Building Systems Corp. When it suddenly stopped, the intercom inside it did not work, so the visitors trapped inside had to use their cell phones to call emergency services. A subsequent inspection found that the intercom was out of order.

Since Tokyo Skytree opened in 2012, there have been two other cases in which an elevator at the tower has come to a sudden halt, one in 2015 and one in 2017. In the March 2017 incident, 27 visitors were trapped inside an elevator for about 20 minutes. The operator resumed using the elevator, saying it was confirmed to be safe, even though the cause of the abrupt stop was not identified.